Heel-shaping machine



May 5, 1931. H. A. SER1-'RAM 1,803,587

- HEEL SHAPING MACHINE Filed may s1. 1929 1 ssnets-sneet 1 May-5, 1931. VH. A. BERTRAM 1&8035587 l HEEL SHAPING MHINE V l Filed May 31, 1929 5 Sheets-.Sheet v2 May 5, 1931.

H. A. SER1-RAM HEEL SHAPING MACHINE F'led May 31, 1929 5 Sheets$heet 3 IlsL lll-.. A.' ..-.hufilll flow:

l Il I 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 H. A. BERTRAM HEEL SHAPING MACHINE Filed May 51, 1929 May 5, H3311,-

May 5, 1931. H. A. BERTRAM HEEL SHAPING MACHINE Filed May 51. 1929 l 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 lllllfll I.

Patented-May 5, .193111Y i Y. 1li-803,587 i Y A -HUGOAL BERTRAM. oFA MALDEN, MAssAcHusEfrTs fHEnn-sirnrruo MACINE A e y 'Apfnicatioalearray 31,'

The inventionl to behereinafter described relates to machines for shaping the breasts ofheels..l

" A number ofV types ofA wood heelsy in'-V eluding the Cuban typeof heel have their breasts concaved transversely. Heretoiore difficulty has` been experieri'ced1' in shaping the breast accurately so that it has the e proper relation tothe other iaces'ofthe'heel, due partly tothe fact that considerable variation occurs inthe blocks orV blanks which are used in makingthe heel. In producing these blocks, planks are sawed longitudinally thereof to forni strips, and these strips are eut transversely` and'jobliquely at intervals into blocks. `The transverse cuts are made rapidly and variationin the dimensions lof the blocks is liable' to occur, sometimes as much as two or three siXteenths of an inch.

l Also the sides Vof,the blank which are to beoomethesides of the 'finished heel :are not always perpendicular tofthe faces of the blank which are to become the top an'dfbotf Y. tom of theheel. `Heret'ofore the block e relation to the cutter for shaping the breast, that frequently the concaved breastV was not properly'al'i'ned relativelyto the top'ofthe heel, andas aconsequ'ence a substantial peri centage of defectivejhe'els resulted.`

One of the purposesfofthe present inven tion, therefore', is to provide 'a heely shape ing machine which will' so hold the' heel that the cutter will shapethe concaved breast of the heel `with proper relation to the'top of the heel, and thereby greatly reduce 'the'nunr ber of waste heels. e' The characterjof the inventionmay beV best understoodby referencetothe follow# ing description ofone good formthereof shown` in thel accompanying drawings, wherein:v Y j Fig. l-is a ,r'ont elevation of the machine; A' Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the heel block hopper, table, carriage, heel blockV holder,"'and"l slide -supportingplate ;i

Fig.- 3 on an enlarged scale, isv a" pla-n of Y the vfmaol'iine,"thehopper. shown Y' 5o transverse section; Y L

Vhas'be'enso held with 1929.A fsrial-ivo. 367,341. 'Y

Fig; 4 is a `side elevation offtheu'pp'c une 6 6 of Fig.' 5, a portion of a heeibiock being shown in broken lines; Fig. Z is a vertical section through'thespring-pressed member for engagement with the top of the block; 9 l

Fig. 8 is a horizontalsection through the` holderv andV hopperY showing a block inthe holder and a block to follow the one in the holder; Fig. 9 is a plan of thehopper;

of the'cutter and `a block; l Y

Fig. 10a is a vi-ew offtheicuttenlooking toward the right ofV Fig. 10; l

' Fig. 11 is a perspective viewffulllines .showing the block after havingv its breast shaped vby the cutter,` and Vdot-and-dash linesl showing the final 'shape'V ofthe Cubanheel; Fig'.-` 12 isa perspectiveview fof the'slide for delivering the blocks ro'mthe hopper to the holder; and 1 Y Fig. lOon an enlarged scaleis a sideview j Y Fig. 13 is anelevation showing the'camsl and. the-drivingmeans for the cutter and camsl l t.

Referring to shown therein as one good embodiment.:` of

the invention,.may.have any suitablesup- Y" port, in the presentinstance inthe form of a the. drawings, the: Vmachine stand V'1 (Figl) having four legs supporting 1 a table. Mounted on the table in bearings 5 is a shaft 7- having afoutter 9 (Fig. 10' and 10a) fast on one end thereof fwith teeth -11 suitably formed` to shape the con- Ycaved` breast 13 `of;-tlie heel: blank 15. The

shaft 7; has agpulley 17'ther`eon connected'loyV e a beltg19'f'lwith a pulley 21"on the armature shaft of an electric motorx23.,

Mounted on the table is ahopperQ `(Fig. 9) having a fixed vwall 27 and Van adjustable y wall 29. `Betweenthese walls are sides 31 Y and 33. The side 31 is pivotally connected v to a platey adjustablymounted on the Vwall -27 by bolts 37 (Fig.- 4) kprojecting through holes in the plate 35 and elongated slots 38 in the wall 27. The plate 31 has ears 39 (Fig. 9) pivotally connected to ends of links 41, the opposite ends of which have elongated slots connected by bolts 43 with ears 45 on the plate 35. The plate 33 is pivotally connected to the wall 29, and has ears 47 pivotally connected to ends of links 449, the opposite ends of which have elongated slots therein connected by bolts 5l with ears 53 on the wall 29. The wall 29 has a foot 55 having elongated slots receiving bolts 57 secured to the table. The construction is such that the walls 27 and 29 and plates 31 and 33 may be adjusted to accommodate blocks of various sizes and having front and back faces at various angles with respect to the tops of the blocks.

Beneath the hopper is a slide 59 (Figs. 2, 4 and 12) comprising an angle-shaped mem ber 61 having its top flange secured to a pair of rectangular blocks 63 andG secured to a slide rod 67 j movable longitudinally through holes in brackets G9 and 71 over a plate 73 having a shelf 74 (Fig. 2) extending beneath the holder. Projecting down from the plate 73 through slots in the table are legs 75 adjustably secured to the table by set screws 77. The construction is such that the plate 73 may be supported at different elevations to accommodate blocks of different thicknesses.

The slide is reciprocated in order to deliver blocks successively from the hopper to a holder to be described. To accomplish this, an arm 79 is secured to the slide, depends therefrom beneath the table, and has an opening through which a rod 81 extends. This rod is provided with a pair of spaced collars 83 and 85 fast thereon, and a coil spring 87 encircles the rod and is confined between the collar 83 and the arm 79, said spring being adapted to be somewhat compressed when the block is pushed intothe holder. `The rod 81 extends toward the front of the machine, and is pivotally'connected to the upper end of a lever 89, the lower end of which is pivotally mounted on a shaft 91 (Fig. 13) at the lower end of the stand. A follower 93 on the lever occupies a groove 95 in a cani 97 (Figs. 1 and 13) suitably formed to impart to the slide its required motion.

The cam 97 is fast on a shaft 99 journalled in bearings on the stand. rThis shaft should be rotated at a speed much slower than Vthat of the cutter. To accomplish this, the armature shaft of the Vmotor has a Vpulley 101 (Fig. 13) fast thereon connected by a belt 103 with a pulley 105 on a sleeve shaft 106 (Fig. 1) loose on the cam shaft 99. Secured to the sleeve shaft is a small pulley 107 connected by a belt 109 with a pulley 111 on a countershaft 113 journalled in bearings on the stand. Fast on the countershaft is a small sprocket wheel 115 connected by a sprocket chain 117 with a larger sprocket wheel 119 fast on the cam shaft 99.

Next will be described the holder for receiving the blocks from the slide and for feeding them past the cutter to shape the concaved breasts of the blocks. This holder is on a carriage 121 (Figs. 2, 3 and 4) mounted to reciprocate on the table 3 transversely to the path of the slide and parallel to the axis of the cutter. The holder has a recess 123 for receiving the block, and pivotally mounted in this recess is a stop or abutment 125 to be engaged by the top of the block, and a stop or abutment 127 to be engaged by the back ofthe block. The stop 127 is pivotally mounted on an arm 128 pro jecting laterally from a flange 1280, on a plate 128?) slidable in a groove in a lateral extension 121@ of the carriage, said plate being held in different positions of adjustment by a bolt 128e entered through a hole in the extension and an elongated slot in the plate. A screw 129 on the holder is engaged by the stop 125, and a screw 131 on the plate flange 128e is engaged by the stop 127. The stop 127 is held against the screw 131 by a coil spring 133 having; one end secured to the stop, and the other end secured to said flange. The screws 129 and 131 may be adjusted to vary the angles of the stops 125 and 127 and the plate 1282 may be adjusted, to accommodate blocks of various shapes and sizes.

An important feature of the invention is the construction whereby the block is so held in the holder that when the block is fed past the cutter, a concaved breast will be formed which has its medial line w24-m (Fig. 11) perpendicular to a line t-t in the plane of the top ofthe block which is a tangent to the are 135 at the intersection of the arc and the medial line '1n-m. In other Words, the concaved breast of the blank should be on an arc whose axis is coincident with the axis of the cutter, and perpendicular to said tangent.

To properly hold the blank in the holder, a presser 137 (Figs. 5, 6 and 8) is provided having a body 139 slidably mounted on the carriage and having a thin rocker jaw 141 pivotally connected to the front end of the presser with toothed portions 143 adapted to engage and bite into the bottom of the block. The presser has a pair of pins 145 in bores in the presser with heads 147 engaged by coil springs 149, said pins being for a purpose to be described. Projecting laterally from the rear end of the presser is a lug 151 (Fig. 8) opposite a recess in the carriage containing a coil spring 153 which tends to retreat the presser from the block.

A bell-crank 155 is pivotally mounted on the carriage, and one armthereof carries a tube'.157 rhaving a; reduced portion threaded tov said arm and held in different positions of1 adjustment by a nut 158. A Vpin 159' projects through the tube; andV engages the rear end of the presser. A coil spring-161 is confinedbetween ahead on the -pin anda plug 163 threaded into an end of the tube. The other arm of the' belljcrank 155 -isj in the form of ayoke 165 (Figsl and 4) carrying a pairof'rollers -167 which are-adapted to ride 'along fixed cam-ridges 1691 on .a

wall 170rrising from the table 3. Thegbell`` crank is rocked to holdtherollersagainst the cams by a coil spring 171' havingone Vend connected to-thebell-crani,"and the' other endconnected to the.'carriage.,

To further contribute to proper position`- ing ofthe-block inthe holder, an arm 173 v(Figs."2'and 3) is mounted on Vthe carriage and carries'a tube 175` (Fig. 7) inwhich is alpin 177 having aA rounded head l179 at r one end thereof, and fiat headv 1817at the opposite end thereof in av counterbore in the tube. A coil spring 183 urgesthe head 17 9 downward until limited byv engagement of the head 181 with an end of the counterbore containing the spring 183.l 3 y 1 ToreCiprOCate-the carriage on the fta-ble, an; armz185 (Figs. 1 fand' 3) is connected to one endof the carriage. A-bell-cranlr187 is pivotally mounted on a stud 189 car ried on a bracket 191 projecting laterally from the table. -One arm of this bell-crank isV` pivotally connected to the arm 185, and the other arm ofthe bell-crank is connect'edby `a link 192 to the upper end of the lever- 193V (Figsl and 13) having its lower endpivotally mounted onthe shaft91 referred-to, at

" of'whichdrops down'onto "the to'pof the slide 59,1and when the latter retreats kwill drop down in front of the slideblo'cl 63 onto' the plate 73. Then-whenV the slide advances the block'will be pushed onto the,

:shelf 74 and intothe holder; thetop'of the block will be-brought into engagement `with the stop 125, the back of the block Ywill'be brought into engagement withthe` stop 127, and the upper side ofthe block` will fbe f engaged by the head 179 ofthe springpressed pin 177 When the holder carriage starts to move to the'right (Fig. 8), the yoke carried rollers 167will-ridefupon the cams 169,-and the bell-crank 155 will thrust the presser 137 tqvvard'the block` and; cause the teeth of the rocker jaw 1111 tofbite into the bottom ofthe block,r andthe latter Awill the e stop 125'. The presser `will 4. cause i the top ofthe block to seat fully and squarely .against the stop 125 regardless of whether i thelovver sideof .the block engages the shelf at the bottom of the-recess 123 or not.` The narrow; rocker-jaw permits `the block` adjust itself. thereonV withl such slight roclv ing movement verticallyv or horizontallyV as l .Y

may be necessary for the flat against thestop.

block .top-Vito rest The :movement of i the "beu-@rank is" yeidl' inglyimparted to the presser through the vpin 1591and'the spring 161, but sineethe lat- .ter isstrong, the top of the block will be firmly held ag'ainstthe stop`125I The carriage isnow yfedfurtherto the right (Fig. 8),

and in vso ldoingthe front face ofthe block .Y

is fed pasttheicutter, lwhich shapes the concaved breast ofthe heel. As the carriage s5- continues to the right,-the rollers 1167 will ride off from the cams .169, thereby allowing the spring -171-*to-,rockr the bell-crankA and: move the pin 159 to the-right (Fig. 8). .1 The' spring 153 now becomes effective to retreat the presser from the block as assistedby the spring-pressed pins 145'whi`ch` disengage the teeth 14131 from the block, and the latter now is free to drop from-the holder through the discharge opening 5201 in the Vltable.' Next the carriage is moved ftothe left (FigLS)7 and-the cycle of operationsdescribed is rer peated for the next block. Y Y. Heretofore, *the construction of imachines for shaping Ithe breast-ofthev block has been' lsuch that lines,-ridgesfor marks occur on the surface of the '-breast, making it necessary in a'subsequent operationto sandpaper thel surface in order to give lit Vthe required smoothness. ',The construction Vof the present machine is such that thebreast is--given a smooth, polished surface eliminating the` necessity of the sandpapering operation. The bladesof'the-eutter have edges oblique to the aXi'sof the cuttenfr4The block isfed in a direction-parallel -to the axis of the cutter and in, the generalj direction ofthe edges `of the blades.- Thel advance ends ,of the blade edges remove the stock,` and as the block continues past the cutter, the cutting edges of Vthe 'blades-continue tofact' onfthe' Vsurface, of the breast with `a shearing action.

It will also be noted thatperipheral ,polish-V ing surfaces areiprovided on thecutter ad-V joining the rearwardly extendingportions of the cutting-- edges and extending peripherally therefrom inl a direction backwardly of such edges.V These peripheral cutting edges and polishing surfaces remove' any lines, ridgesY or marks left 'in V,the initial. cutting operation and serve to leave the concaved;

breast 13 in a smooth and polished condition,

Af-terthe concave front `face or breast-ofV the olock hasr'been. shaped, the block uis placed inA thel turning 'machine for shaping l ffl the sides and back of thebloclr, and clamped in a position determined by the top of the block. Since the concave face produced by the present machine has the proper relation to the top of the block, and the position of the block in the turning machine is determined by the top of the block, the proper relations of the sides and the back of the heell with respect to the top and breast are assured. Y

By this invention an etlicient heel breasting machine is provided which Will automatically feed the heel blocks successively to the holder and relatively to the cutter, and discharge the blocks from the machine Without further attention on the part of the operator than to supply the blocks to the hopper. Y

It Will be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific embodiment shown, and that various deviations may be made therefrom Without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, in combina-tion, a rotary cutter, a hopper for receiving a supply of heel blocks, a holder,a slide for delivering blocks successively from the hopper to the holder, and means for moving the holder and the block therein past the cutter to shape the breast of the heel.

2. A machine forshaping breasts of heels comprising, in combination, a rotary cutter, a hopper for receiving a supply of heel blocks, a holder cooperating with the cutter, and means for pushing' a block delivered by the hopper into the holder, said holder being reciprocable ina path parallel to the axis of the cutter.

3. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, in combination, a rotary cutter, a hopper for receiving a supply of heel blocks, a holder, and means for pushing a block delivered by the hopper into thev holder, said holder having means for automatically gripping the block therein.

4. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, in combination, a rotary cutter, a hopper for receiving a supply of heel blocks, a support, a carriage on the support having a heel block holder, a slide for delivering blocks successively from the hopper to the holder, means on the holder for automatically gripping a block fed thereto, and means for feeding the carriage along the support to carry the block past the cutter to form the concave breast of the heel, said block gripping means having provision automatically to release the block after it has passedV the cutter.

5. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, in combination, a rotary cutter, ai heel block holder, means for feeding blocks r successively tothe holder, means for feeding the holder and bloclrirela'tively to the cutter to shape the breast of the heel, said holder having means for automatically gripping each block delivered thereto and for automatically releasing the block after it has passed the cutter.

6. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, in combination, a rotary cutter, a heel block holder, means for feeding blocks successively to the holder, means for automatically gripping the block delivered to the holder, and means for moving the holder relatively to the cutter to shape the concave breast of the heel, said gripping means having provision for Vdischarging the block from the holder after it has passed the cutter.

7. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, in combination, a rotary cutter, a heel block holder, means to introduce heel blocks successively into the holder, means to move the holder to carry the block past the cutter to form the concave breastof the heel block, and means on the holder for automatically gripping the block therein so that the cutter Will form a concave breast on the block having its medial line perpendicular to a'tangent to the arc of the concave breast and in the plane of the block top at the intersection of the medial line and tangent.

8. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising in combination, a rotary cutter, a heel block holder having abutments for engagement With the top and back of the heel block, means for automatically seating the top of the block squarely against one of the abutments, and means for moving the holder and the block therein in a straight path past the critter and parallel to the axis of the cutter to shape the breast of the heel.

9. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, in combination, a rotary cutter, a hopper for receiving a supply of heal blocks, a heel block holder, a slide for transferring blocks successively from the hopper to the holder, means for automatically reciprocating the slide, and means for automatically reciprocating th'e holder to move the holder to block receiving position, and to move the holder past the cutter to shape the concave breast of the heel.

l0. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising in combination, a rotary cutter, a hopper for receiving a supply of heel blocks, a heel block holder, a slide for transferring blocks successively from the hopper to the holder, means for automatically reciprocating the slide, and means including a cam for automatically reciprocating the holder to move the holder to block receiving position, and to move the holder past the cutter to shape the concave breast of the heel.

1l. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, in combination, a rotary cutter, a hopper for receiving heelv blocks, a holder for receiving a heel block, a slide beneath the hopper kfor supporting the blocks in the hopper and for delivering blocks successively therefrom totheholder,

I,and means for moving the holder past the -cutter to shape the concave breast of the.

comprising, in combination, a rotary cutter,

a carriage, a heel block holder thereon having an abutment for engagement with the vpolishing surfaces at the periphery thereof adjoining the said rearwardly extending cutting edges and extending peripherally thereof ina direction backwardly of vsuch edges, and means for feeding a heel block toward and past the cutter in a direction parallel to its rotary Yaxis whereby the block will be cut or grooved out by the'vinwardly Y i extending portions of the cutting edges and the `cut-out surface of the heel thereafter finished by the b'ackwardly extending portions of the cutting edges and polished by.

the said polishing surfaces. Y

Y i HUGO VA.yBl3lR'I`RA.M.

top of the block, a presser for engagement with the bottom of the block, and means for operatingthe presser including a bell-crank Vpivotally mounted on the carriage, a member on one arm of the bell-crank for engagement with the presser, a follower on the other arm of the bell-crank, and a cam cooperating with thefollower to rock the bell-crank and` cause its member to move the presser toward and against the bottom of the block.

14. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, in combination, Va' rotary cutter, a support, a carriage movable on the support, a heel Vblock holder on the carriage, an abutment on'the holder for engagement with the top of the block, a presser on the holder forengagement' with the bottom of the block, a fixed cam on the Vsupport, and means on thecarriage actuated by said camfor causing the presser toengage the bottom of the block and press the top of the block against the abutment on movement of the carriage Vrelatively to the cutter.

15. A machine for shaping breasts of heels comprising, inlcombination, `a rotary f cutter, 'a heel block holder having an abutment for engagement ,with the top of the A j edge for engagement with the bottom of thev block and adapted to permit the block to seat squarely against the abutment.

16. A machine for shaping the breasts :of

heels comprising, in combination, a disk-like rotary cuttervhaving cuttingbladeson and adjacent to the periphery thereof, said` blades having cutting edges extending Vinwardly of the cutter at its forward face and extending continuously from their outer ends rearwardlv at the periphery ofthe cutter at aY cutting height which remains sub stantially constant, and the cutter having 7011 .La-m.

Yit) 

